Episode 9: Sacrifice (Sorcerer: Into the Klau)

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TL;DR

  • Aided by Krenzi, Tulasa summons a healing hearth spirit known as “The Loving Caress”.
  • Aided by Siliona, Duke summons the memory of Ruprekt Fan Hyvel into the warlord’s spear.
  • Ghanna and Chaser pass through the Aspen Vale with the scouting party of witch hunters and steppe warriors, and reach the Deenskewâl after nightfall.

In the Infinite Stacks…

In the Infinite Stacks, Krenzi sends the Invader away and Tulasa grants him refuge to rest in the Stacks. Tulasa meanwhile directs his animus for Kurik to make contact with another demon, the “Loving Caress”. She reveals that the cloak that once served as her form is in the cloakroom of the Infinite Stacks: A former warden of the Stacks was once her mistress.

In the ruins on Caer Hyvel…

In the ruins on Caer Hyvel, Sidney spies on Sietske Twiling speaking with her mother Nolduske Hinnemûs for Duke: She learns that the Hudbeklaaid mercenaries are rounding up all the men of the Southfarthing, and they are burning in Heechoven day and night. Her sister Ninke’s husband Iambs was taken.

When Sietske’s husband Troché asks Duke to lend his mercenary team to the aid of the Klavs, to drive the invaders out of their land, Duke puts it to a vote. Siliona and Sidney favor helping the Klavs, but Armentad wants to stick to their mission. Armentad gives in.

Duke resolves to explore the ruins to find Ruprekt Fan Hyvel’s spear, and summon his spirit into it for Siliona. They inform the Klavs that the crypts will be trapped, so they must not follow Duke and his crew there. Duke goes into the crypt with Armentad, Sidney, Siliona, and Lancelot, and begins reaching out to the departed spirit of Fan Hyvel. After hours of unanswered calls, Armentad and Sidney grow restless, and then Fan Hyvel’s voice answers them.

On the high ridge of Caer Hyvel…

On the high ridge of Caer Hyvel, Avga Akh is silent as he assesses the disappearance of the riders who attacked his scouting party. Chaser speaks to him as Ghanna inspects a few pieces of ancient, dinted armor. Lance Corporal Guiomar of the Felkiezers asks Chaser to make sure his son is trained as an Inquisitor if he himself does not return, so that the title of “Elvenban“ (“Elf-bane”) bestowed on his forefather during the War of the Alliance will carry on after him.

In the Infinite Stacks…

Krenzi wakes and assists Tulasa in summoning the Loving Caress. Tulasa collects every record mentioning Kurik’s name from the Infinite Stacks and tears them out while kneeling before a fireplace, making sure they are all slowly consumed by the fire in a huge wodge, and the cloak breathes, urging Tulasa to eat good soup right away.

Fan Hyvel’s Tomb

Duke and Siliona parley with Fan Hyvel’s ghost, who reveals that he wants nothing more than to drive out all “Ynkringers” (invaders/outsiders) from the Klau. They begin the ritual to summon the spirit, but the ritual fails without a sacrifice.

The Aspen Vale

After sunset, Chaser’s scouting party rides through the Aspen Vale in the fold between Caer Hyvel and the Deenskewâl. The Skaalruters notice a small pinchpot at the base of an aspen tree. Ghanna smells sour milk in it and spots strange tracks left by the cubs of a large carnivore.

Guiomar remembers the Lupitzes leaving bits of cheese for the “neighbors” as they passed through the vale. They decide to leave some of Avga Akh’s “saddle curds” in the pinchpot and continue, and in six more pinchpots they find as they travel through the wood. As the darkness grows deeper, they see red eyes peer at them through the thicket as they pass.

After leaving the wood behind them, Chaser’s party rides up a glacier that forms part of the Deenskewâl.

At the Hinnemûs Farmstead…

Tulasa and Krenzi exit the Stacks to scavenge arromatic herbs and ingredients from the Hinnemûs cellar. They find what they need, and Krenzi lends his camp pot to cook up the soup. As Tulasa drinks the soup, the Loving Caress becomes truly bound to him as her master. Tulasa and Krenzi set out toward Caer Hyvel.

Fan Hyvel’s Tomb

Duke kneels before Maiven’s dog Lancelot, the crew’s mascot, and urges him to go and catch a wild animal they can use for a sacrifice. Lancelot leaves the ruins, coming back with two baby possums.

Duke performs the ritual to contact Fan Hyvel’s spirit again, and then kills one of the possum joeys. The summoning succeeds, and Duke hands Siliona the newly-haunted spear of Fan Hyvel. To seal the bond between them, Fan Hyvel calls on her to plunge the spear into the heart of an Ynkringer. Without hesitation, Siliona cuts off her golden braid and lunges the spear at Armentad

On the Deenskewâl…

After nightfall Skaalruters and Hounds attempt to make camp on the glacier, but the little firewood they have will barely light and glows only dimly, providing inadequate heat. Chaser and Ghanna agree to press on through the night to reach Heksepunt before daybreak.

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